Relationships of self-management abilities to loneliness among older people: a cross-sectional study

BACKGROUND: We investigated relationships of broader self-management abilities (self-efficacy, positive frame of mind, investment behavior, taking initiatives, multifunctionality of resources, variety of resources) to social and emotional loneliness among community-dwelling older people while controlling for background characteristics. METHODS: This cross-sectional study employed a representative sample of 41,327 community-dwelling people aged ≥55 years in Limburg, the Netherlands, identified using the population register (weighted per district, complex sampling design). In total, 20,327 (50%) people responded to the questionnaire. RESULTS: All self-management abilities were associated negatively with emotional loneliness. Taking initiatives, multifunctionality, self-efficacy, and a positive frame of mind were associated negatively with social loneliness. Self-efficacy had the strongest relationships with social and emotional loneliness. CONCLUSIONS: In combatting loneliness among older people, investment in their ability to self-manage their social lives and activities, such as increasing opportunities for positive social interaction and social support and reducing maladaptive cognition, seems to be crucial

Risk factors of loneliness across the life span

Although loneliness is typically associated with adolescence and old age, research has revealed that it is prevalent across the life span. The present study contributes to the loneliness literature by investigating a broad range of risk factors in a Dutch sample (N = 52,341) ranging from late adolescence to old age using a cross-sectional survey administered by the regional public health services in the province of Limburg in the Netherlands. Risk factors associated with higher levels of self-reported loneliness across the life span were being male, lower education levels, inadequacy of financial resources, mental health, informal caregiving that is experienced as burdensome, and limited social contact or network type. In addition, in early adulthood, having a non-western migration background and having a physical disability were associated with higher levels of loneliness, whereas living alone, having a non-western migration background, and not having a paid job were risk factors of loneliness in middle adulthood. In late adulthood, living alone and having a physical disability were associated with loneliness. The present study demonstrates that different stages of life are associated with different vulnerability factors of loneliness. Hence, the prevention of loneliness might require different interventions in different age groups

Risk factors of loneliness across the life span

Although loneliness is typically associated with adolescence and old age, research has revealed that it is prevalent across the life span. The present study contributes to the loneliness literature by investigating a broad range of risk factors in a Dutch sample (N = 52,341) ranging from late adolescence to old age using a cross-sectional survey administered by the regional public health services in the province of Limburg in the Netherlands. Risk factors associated with higher levels of self-reported loneliness across the life span were being male, lower education levels, inadequacy of financial resources, mental health, informal caregiving that is experienced as burdensome, and limited social contact or network type. In addition, in early adulthood, having a non-western migration background and having a physical disability were associated with higher levels of loneliness, whereas living alone, having a non-western migration background, and not having a paid job were risk factors of loneliness in middle adulthood. In late adulthood, living alone and having a physical disability were associated with loneliness. The present study demonstrates that different stages of life are associated with different vulnerability factors of loneliness. Hence, the prevention of loneliness might require different interventions in different age groups

Risk factors of loneliness across the life span

Although loneliness is typically associated with adolescence and old age, research has revealed that it is prevalent across the life span. The present study contributes to the loneliness literature by investigating a broad range of risk factors in a Dutch sample (N = 52,341) ranging from late adolescence to old age using a cross-sectional survey administered by the regional public health services in the province of Limburg in the Netherlands. Risk factors associated with higher levels of self-reported loneliness across the life span were being male, lower education levels, inadequacy of financial resources, mental health, informal caregiving that is experienced as burdensome, and limited social contact or network type. In addition, in early adulthood, having a non-western migration background and having a physical disability were associated with higher levels of loneliness, whereas living alone, having a non-western migration background, and not having a paid job were risk factors of loneliness in middle adulthood. In late adulthood, living alone and having a physical disability were associated with loneliness. The present study demonstrates that different stages of life are associated with different vulnerability factors of loneliness. Hence, the prevention of loneliness might require different interventions in different age groups

Drinking motives, alcohol expectancies, self-efficacy and drinking habits

Item does not contain fulltextThe current study focused on the associations between drinking motives, alcohol expectancies, self-efficacy, and drinking behavior in a representative sample of 553 Dutch adolescents and adults. Data were gathered by means of self-report questionnaires and a 14-days drinking diary. A model was postulated in which negative expectancies and self-efficacy were directly associated with drinking, and in which drinking motives mediated the associations between positive expectancies, and drinking. The findings of multivariate analyses showed that drinking motives were related to general indicators of drinking and to drinking levels in specific situations. Furthermore, self-efficacy was moderately related to all drinking variables. Negative expectancies were related to general drinking variables but hardly to drinking in specific situations. Positive expectancies were hardly related to drinking in multivariate analyses and therefore mediation models could not be tested. No systematic moderator effects were apparent for age and gender on the associations between drinking motives, alcohol expectancies, self-efficacy, and drinking

CAN THE COMBINED USE OF TWO SCREENING INSTRUMENTS IMPROVE THE PREDICTIVE POWER OF DEPENDENCY IN (INSTRUMENTAL) ACTIVITIES OF DAILY LIVING, MORTALITY AND HOSPITALIZATION IN OLD AGE?

BACKGROUND: Due to differences in the definition of frailty, many different screening instruments have been developed. However, the predictive validity of these instruments among community-dwelling older people remains uncertain. OBJECTIVE: To investigate whether combined (i.e. sequential or parallel) use of available frailty instruments improves the predictive power of dependency in (instrumental) activities of daily living ((I)ADL), mortality and hospitalization. DESIGN, SETTING AND PARTICIPANTS: A prospective cohort study with two-year follow-up was conducted among pre-frail and frail community-dwelling older people in the Netherlands. MEASUREMENTS: Four combinations of two highly specific frailty instruments (Frailty Phenotype, Frailty Index) and two highly sensitive instruments (Tilburg Frailty Indicator, Groningen Frailty Indicator) were investigated. We calculated sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value (PPV), and negative predictive value (NPV) for all single instruments as well as for the four combinations, sequential and parallel. RESULTS: 2,420 individuals participated (mean age 76.3 ± 6.6 years, 60.5% female) in our study. Sequential use increased the levels of specificity, as expected, whereas the PPV hardly increased. Parallel use increased the levels of sensitivity, although the NPV hardly increased. CONCLUSIONS: Applying two frailty instruments sequential or parallel might not be a solution for achieving better predictions of frailty in community-dwelling older people. Our results show that the combination of different screening instruments does not improve predictive validity. However, as this is one of the first studies to investigate the combined use of screening instruments, we recommend further exploration of other combinations of instruments among other study populations

Multimorbidity and its relation to subjective memory complaints in a large general population of older adults

Background: Multimorbidity has been suggested to be associated with a variety of negative health-related outcomes. The present study was designed to evaluate the association between multimorbidity and subjective memory complaints. Methods: This cross-sectional study was based on data obtained from a postal survey designed by the Public Health Service (Gemeentelijke Gezondheids Dienst, GGD) involving 15,188 persons aged 55 years and over living independently in Limburg, the Netherlands. Multivariate logistic regression analyses, adjusted for potentially important covariates, were performed to evaluate the association between self-reported multimorbidity and three outcomes related to subjective memory complaints. Results: Multimorbidity was indeed related to subjective memory complaints. The association between multimorbidity and subjective memory complaints was positively influenced by age. Moreover, multimorbidity was related to the degree of worrying about memory complaints in people who perceived themselves as forgetful. Multimorbidity was also associated with reporting a larger increase in these subjective memory complaints during the past year. In this latter case, multimorbidity had more prognostic capability in men than in women. Psychological distress was related to all three subjective memory-related outcome measures. Conclusions: In our sample, which was representative of the Dutch population, multimorbidity was associated with subjective memory complaints. The relationship between multimorbidity and subjective memory complaints differed between men and women and between age groups